Hockey Stuns Princeton With OT Goal, Shuts Out No. 15 Quinnipiac for Road Trip Sweep

Upsetting ranked opponents is nothing new for the Harvard men’s hockey team (2-1-0, 2-1-0 ECAC). Despite succumbing to a lull against the Dartmouth Big Green on the back of its stunning tie against No. 3 Boston University in the team’s preseason scrimmage, the squad boarded its bus headed to Princeton with renewed sense of urgency.

A thrilling 4-3 overtime victory for the Crimson against the Tigers set the tone for the weekend, and the team kept the pedal to the metal as it posted an epic 3-0 shutout against No. 15 Quinnipiac on Saturday. Quick starts have been the name of the game for Head Coach Ted Donato’s team the past few seasons, so all eyes will be on the Harvard Crimson to see if it can keep barreling full steam ahead.

Harvard 4, Princeton 3

While the title “hero” might be extreme to bestow upon a freshman still looking to make his mark on a storied program, it was all Mick Thompson against the Tigers as the freshman potted his first career goal. Cheers echoed through Hobey Baker rink as the freshman forward sailed one past the unsuspecting Princeton netminder Ethan Pearson during the three-on-three overtime period, sealing the Crimson’s fate as the underdog victor.

"On the goal it was Ian Moore who made a smart play by pinching on their guy, the puck popped out and I picked it up and realized I had a bit of time," Thompson said. "I initially wanted to pass to Joe Miller but I saw their defensemen was already anticipating that, so I looked to shoot and saw traffic in front of the net and thankfully it went in."

"It felt great to score but I think more importantly that was a big win for us which helped build our confidence which carried over into Quinnipiac the following night," the freshman added.

However, as every sports fan is aware, a game is not defined by just one pivotal play. While the Crimson was able to eke out the win against its Ancient Eight foe, there are still areas for the squad to improve upon as it heads into more intense conference battles.

Similarly to last weekend, the simple things seemed to evade the Crimson early on. While the communication was there for Donato’s bench throughout the first period, the team was unable to find the back of the cage. Despite putting immense amounts of offensive pressure on Pearson with point-blank one-on-one takes, the ring of puck on yarn evaded the crowd at Hobey Baker.

"I think something we can look to improve on is creating more even strength chances offensively," Thompson said. "We’ve done a great job at getting pucks to the net but I think if we can be more consistent with finishing those chances that will benefit us."

Princeton dashed out to an early 1-0 lead after a defensive miscommunication saw the Tigers’ Nick Mariciano draw first blood. The Greenwich, Conn. native capitalized on the chaos as the Crimson was unable to get the puck out of the middle following a gut-wrenching cross-fan pass that was narrowly missed on the initial take.

The clock wound down to about the three minute mark before the Crimson was granted a chance to even the score at one all. With an extra man on the ice due to an errant Princeton penalty that saw a Tigers skater level junior goaltender Aku Koskenvuo via a flagrant hit from behind, Harvard continued pressuring the home team. While the squad was unable to strike on the power play, it started building up momentum that would ultimately serve it well in the second.

Junior forward Joe Miller struck back to open the second, finding success in the scrum in front of the cage as a piece of sophomore forward Ben MacDonald’s strike was deflected by Pearson and seemingly fell into Miller’s lap for an easy finish.

Princeton and Harvard traded blows once more each in the second to round out the period in a gridlock that would foreshadow the outcome of the next fifteen minutes of play as well. While a goal from junior forward Casey Severo would give the Crimson its first lead of the night in the third, edging out 3-2 ahead of the Tigers, the home team was able to claw its way back into contention on a power play, before Thompson struck the decisive blow in overtime.

“I think one thing we can improve on is team discipline, specifically staying out of the penalty box,” senior defender Jack Bar said. “We took too many unnecessary penalties and gave the other team momentum through power plays.”

While discipline might have been something Donato’s bench was lacking during the trial against Princeton, the bus ride back to a more familiar New England state clearly helped Harvard see the light and work through the kinks from Friday.

Harvard 3, Quinnipiac 0

Coming off its electric win over the Tigers, the Crimson still faced a significant test in order to finish the weekend undefeated: traveling to beat the No. 15 Quinnipiac Bobcats, a team which received the second-most points in the preseason ECAC coaches poll but has yet to play up to its pedigree.

“Our team was more eager than anything heading into Saturday’s game,” Bar said. “We were excited for the opportunity to win in front of a big crowd at their rink.”

The Crimson won with a simple and straightforward formula: capitalize on the power play and rely on Kosvenkuo to ensure that the Bobcats couldn’t do the same.

It took Harvard almost the entirety of the first period to break through offensively despite unleashing a barrage of shots at Quinnipiac goalie Matej Marinov, a sophomore out of Nitra, Slovakia. Marinov racked up an impressive five saves in the first five minutes of play.

But the Slovak couldn’t withstand a relentless power play attack by the Crimson starting in the 16th minute that gave Donato’s squad the man-up chance following a hooking call on Mason Marcellus. Ryan Healey handled the puck and slapped a 60-footer that Marinov stuffed, sending the puck back out to the perimeter.

The next shot from the Crimson was rebuffed by Marinov as well, with Lucas St. Louis coming up just short on a back-door attempt right outside the crease. With about half a minute left on the power play, it looked like the Crimson would miss a prime opportunity to seize the lead.

But MacDonald came in clutch, coming in hot to meet the puck after Marinov saved a shot from Thompson and swatting it into the net for a sweet rebound goal. The score was MacDonald’s second of the season, on a night where he put consistent pressure on Marinov with three shots.

Playing with the lead, the Crimson wasted little time the next time a man-up opportunity presented itself, 12 minutes into the second act. The Bobcats were left shorthanded after one Moore — Crimson captain Ian Moore — was tripped by another, Quinnipiac defenseman Cooper Moore, earning a penalty.

It was the usual suspects for the Crimson to extend the lead. Barely ten seconds into the power play, Healey laced a pass to Thompson who sat in waiting on the left side of the crease. Rather than take on Marinov himself, the freshman opted to notch his second assist of the game, and third of the weekend, flicking the puck back to the right side to St. Louis, who instantly sent the puck flying into the net.

With a 2-0 lead midway through the second period, Koskenvuo helped ice the game for the Crimson, saving 12 more Bobcat shots before the final whistle blew. When Quinnipiac sent its netminder off with just over two minutes to go, the Finn stood tall, making two final saves while being surrounded by Bobcats.

Freshman Justin Solovey put the nail in the Bobcats’ coffin with an empty-net goal with 46 seconds left on the clock, showing off his hustle and putting the game decisively out of reach for Quinnipiac. With the 3-0 victory, the Crimson notched its second conference victory and first win over a ranked opponent.

Next weekend, the team will return to Bright-Landry for a pair of consequential ECAC matchups, first against the Colgate Raiders on Friday night and then against the Cornell Big Red on Saturday. The puck will drop against the Raiders at 7:00 p.m. on Nov. 15, with streaming on ESPN+.

—Staff writer Jack Silvers can be reached at jack.silvers@thecrimson.com.
 —Staff writer Katharine Forst can be reached at katharine.forst@thecrimson.com.